What is beautiful is not all good: a meta-analysis on the effects of physical attractiveness on service outcomes

Purpose This research employs meta-analytic procedures to investigate the effects of service providers’ physical attractiveness (PA) in service encounters. Given the inconsistencies among existing studies and the increasing push to adopt technologies like artificial intelligence to reduce the human bias towards attractive employees, this study seeks to provide a more comprehensive understanding of the “beauty premium” in service encounters. The goal is to determine the strength and generalizability of this effect across different service contexts. Design/methodology/approach We use meta-analytic synthesis to determine (1) how indicators of PA influence customers’ perceptions of a service provider’s PA and (2) how PA influences several service outcomes. We use meta-regression to determine how the effect of PA differs in different contexts. Finally, we use meta-analytic structural equation modeling to determine the mechanism(s) underlying PA effects in service encounters. Findings PA has a moderate overall effect on service outcomes. However, the effects range from slightly negative to moderately positive depending on the specific outcome, context and indicators used to measure PA. Several study-level variables explain the heterogeneity in effect sizes. Social perceptions mediate the effect of PA on key service outcomes. Originality/value This is the first study that synthesizes the literature on PA in service research. The quantitative approach allows for a generalizable estimation of the boundaries, processes and overall effects of service provider PA in service encounters.